lippitt



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1. E. LIPPI'TT.

GIRGULAR KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 894,587` Patented Dec. 18, 1888.

(No Mpdel.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2. E. LIPPITT.

CIRCULAR KNITTING MACHINE.

No. 394,587. Patented Deo. 18, 1888.

Ny PETERSy Pnmulhaguprwr. wnhingm, D. C.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEETCE.

ELIHU LIPIITT, OF ZANESVIILE, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO ANNA LIPPITT, ANNA MERCER, HENRY II. STIIRTE- VANT, AND JOHN MARTIN, ALL OF SAME PLACE.

CIRCULAR-KNITTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 394,587, dated December 18, 1888.

Application filed February 17, 1888. Serial No. 264,410. lNo model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELIHU LIPPITT, of Zanesville, in the county of Muskingum and State of Ohio, have invented certain Improvements in Circular-Knitting Machines, of which the following is a specification.

At the present day it is a common practice to knit stockings with heels and toes therein upon knitting-machines having a single set of 1o needles arranged to reciprocate in and lengthwise of a supporti11g-cylinder. The heelin g and toeing operations are performed by 'first raising the needles on one side of the cylinder beyond the reach of the operating-cams, so that they remain at rest and retain their stitches, after which the cams receive an oscillating instead of a rotating motion, so as to actuate only the needles on the opposite side of the machine. During this action the operative zo needles are raised at the end of each course, one at a time, out of action and thereafter lowered, one at a time, into action.

It is the aim of the present invention to provide a single cam which may be so adj usted 2 5 that it will first operate automatically to lift the needles out of act-ion one at a time, and subsequently to lower one at a time into action-that is to say, to effect by means of a single cam the results which have heretofore 3o required the employment of two or more cams.

The essence of the invention resides in a cam adapted to swing or rock, under the influence of the needles upon two different centers, and to assume different positions in 3 5 consequence. inasmuch as my imprcvements are applicable to existing machines without change of the same in other respects-I have illustrated in the accompanying drawings only such parts as are necessary to an under- 4o standing of the invention.

Referring to the drawings, Figure l is an outside face View of a portion of the usual ring employed in cylinder-machines tocarry the needle-operating cams with my improved K cam mechanism mounted thereon. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of the same on the line c 9c. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the same. Fig. el isa view similar to Fig. l, but with the cam in its reversed position. Fior,

5 is an inside face view of the cam-ring and 5o the cams. Fig. o is a perspective view of the cam. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the plate for supporting and adjusting the cam. Figs.

8, 9, l0, and ll are diagrams illustrating the action of my cam under the various conditions encountered in practice.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the needle-cylinder; B, the vertical needles arranged to reciprocate in grooves in the cylinder; and C, a revolving ring encircling the cyl- 6o inder, and provided on its inner face with cams which act upon the heels of the needles to eifect their movements in a manner familiar to those skilled in the art.

The cams by which the needles receive their ordinary movements in knitting may be in all respects of the usual construction. As they have no relation whatever to the present invention, it was deemed unnecessary to illustrate them in the drawings. 7o

In addition to the ordinary needle-operating cams, and at any suitable point on the inside of the usual cam-ring, C, I mount the cam mechanism forming the subject of the present invention.

The main cam forming the essence of the present invention is shown at D. It consists simply of a plate rounded on its upper and lower edges, and provided near opposite ends with two shoulders, d and d', on the upper 8o side, and d2 d3 on the under side. These shoulders may be of the form shown in the drawings, or of any other suitable form which will adapt them to engage with the heels of the needles, to the end that the resistance offered by the needles may cause the cam to rock or tip, as hereinafter explained. The cam is formed upon or fastened rigidly to a vertical arm, d, having at its upper and lower ends, respectively, two horizontal pivots or jour- 9o nals, (Z7 and d8. These journals are seated against and ride upon the upper and lower edges, respectively, of an intermediate plate, E, which is movable vertically in guides e, fixed to the cam-ring C, as shown in the several iigures.

The cam-ring is provided with an opening of sufficient size to admit the camD and perwill bear in the seat c', and the cam D will be free to swing or tip from right to left about the pivot d3 as a center. Vhen, however, the slide is raised, the journal (Z8 is lifted away from its seat and the upper journal, (Z7, seated and held, as shown in,A Fig. 4, in the upper bearing, c, in which position of the parts the cam can t-ip from right to left about the journal (ZT as a center. The plate E and the cam are urged downward by means of an arm, e', jointed to the plate and .to the frame and acted upon by a depressing-spring, e2. The slide and cam are lifted at the proper time by means of a revolving wheel, F, mounted on the cam-ring C, and provided with a pin, f, to act against the lower end of a rigid arm, e3, depending from the plate E.

y Then lifted, the slide and cam are sustained by an arm, e, pivoted at one end to the slide, and provided at the opposite end with an angular slot, e, adapted to interlock with a stud, el, on the canrring C. The arm e is automatically disengaged, to permitl the descent ofthe slide and cam at the proper time, by means of a pivoted lever, es, Vwhich is in turn actuated by the stud f on the wheelA F. The wheel may be rotated in any' appropriate manner, but it is usually toothed on its edge, as shown, and actuated by a pawl, df,'pivoted to the tipping-cam D, so that as the cam rocks to and fro it will advancethe wheellstep by step.

The operation of the cam D is as follows: Assume that it is adjusted to move upon. its lower axis, (Z8, and that it is tipped to the left, as shown in Fig. 5.. If, now, it be carried to the right against the needles, the heel of the vfirst needle will encounter the shoulder (l, as shown in Fig. S, and will by its resistance cause the cam to tip to t-heposition indicated by dotted lines in said figure. In thus tipping the cam will lift the rst needle to such height that its heel will be above the path of the usual operating-cams, so that the needle will.

thereafter remain inactive. In tipping to the new vposition the left end of the cam rises above the level of the needle-Shanks, so that all the needles after the first pass below instead of above the cam, and `thus remain down in their operative positions within reach of the usual operating-cams. Then the motion of the cam is reversed-that is to say, when it is carried to the right, as shown in Fig. Q--its right end encounters the shank of the iirst needle, which acts to tip the cam to the left to its original position, as shown by dotted lines, the first needle being lifted out of action and the following needles caused to pass beneath the cam and remain in action. Thus it will be seen that as the cam is carried to and fr0 the needles at the end of the operative line are lifted automatically one at a time out of action. completed, the cam is raised bodily to its upper position, so as to swing about its upper axis, di.

Assume that the cam stands in its left-han d position, as shown in Fig. 10, as it moves to the left against the needles its under shoulder, d'2, will encounter the shank of the iirst needle, the resistance of which will cause the cam to swing' to the right, as shown in dotted lines, and in so doing' carry the first needle downward to an operativeposition, and at the same time assume such position that the falling needles will pass over the cam and remain in their elevated or linoperative positions. On reversing the motion ofthe cam its shoulder (Z3 will encounter the heel of the iirst needle,

whereupon the cam will be carried to the left thereby and assume its original position, (shown by dotted lines,) the needle being moved downward and the cam assuming such position that the following needles will pass over without bein depressed. This action of depressing the needles automatically one at operative.

I prefer to employ in connection with my automatic cam the needle operating or knitting cams represented in Fig. 5; but it. is to be understood that my invention is.not re# stricted to such combination, and that my device is operative in connection with any other suitable arrangement of cams for moving the needles to effect the ordinary knitting action. In this figure G and G represent two depressing-cams pivoted adjacent to and on opposite sides of the cam D, their oliice heilig to lifty the needles to the end of the cam D and to prevent the needles from falling accidentally below their proper levels. II and I-I represent two depressing-cams arranged above the cams G and G', to prevent the needles from being lifted accidentally out of position. I and I are two small cams or switches pivoted at their inner ends above the cams Hand I-I, and serving, when lifted, to bring the needles which are elevated out of action downward in position to strike against the cam D when the latter .is elevated to the proper position for depressing theV needles. Vhen these cams are used, the cam D may be made of smaller size and given a shorter adjustment in a vertical direction than would 4otherwise be required, since the other cams serve to move the needles downward or upward, as the case After the lifting of the needles is a time is, it will bc perceived, the reverse of IOO IIO

may be, within the path of the cam D. Then the cams I and I are employed, the liftingsprings fz'. are employed to hold them in, and slides or stops of any suitable character to lock them out of action.

lVhile it is preferred to provide the cam with two distinct rigid pivots or journals, and to'sustain and vertically adjust the cam by means of the slide E, bearing' between said journals, it will be apparent to the skilled mechanic that these details are not of the essence of the invention, and that any equivalent construction which will permit the cam and the pivotal point upon which it rocks for the time being,l to be raised and lowered in relation to the normal path of the needleheels, so that the forward elevated end of the cam will ride over or under the heel of the irst needle, as demanded, will fall within the scope of my invention.

I do not claim, broadly, in this case a rockingl cam shouldered at its two ends for the purpose of automatically raising' or automatically lowering the needles one at a time; nor do I claim herein the combination of such rocking; cam with switches or wing-cams I I', these features forming' the subject-matter of a separate application filed by I-Iansdorfer & Lippitt on the 6th day of January, 1888, Serial No. 260,016.

Having' thus described my invention, what I claim isl. In a knitting-machine, a cam shouldered on its upper and under edges and pivoted, that it may rock under the influence of the needles, in combination with means, substantially as described, for raising and lowering' the cam bodily at will, whereby the operative end of the cam may be caused to override or underride the heel of the first needle at will.

2. In a knittingmachine, and in combination with the usual cylinder-needle and neetile-operating, cams, the rocking' shouldered cam D, adapted t-o be rocked by the needles, and means, substantially as described, forX- ing the cam at will above or below the normal path of the needle-heels, whereby the cam may be caused to carr f the needles one at a time into or out of an operative position, as demanded.

3. In a knitting-machine, a needle-actuating cam having two journals or axes, one above the other, in combination with the slide for raising and loweringI the cam, and the two seats or bearing-s adapted to receive the respective journals, whereby the cam may be adjusted to rock upon either of the two axes at will.

4. The shouldered rockin g cam, as described, and its vertically-movable support, in combination with a connecting mechanism actuated by the rocking' motion of the cam to raise and lower said support.

5. rIhe automatic rocking,I cam D, as described, in combination with its rising-andfalling' support, the wheel to raise and lower the support, and the wheel-actuating pawl attached to the cam, whereby the cam is caused to lift the needles out of operation and then reverse its action and return them automatically to their operative positions.

6. The cam D, having the shouldered ends and the two journals, in combination with the adjustable supporting-plate E, lying between said journals, the ringI or frame having,I the bearings c 1" therein, the depressi11g-spring,l and its arm, and the sustaining-latch e4.

7. In combii'iation with the rocking,- cam, its two bearings and its supportin9slide, the latch-arm e4, to sustain the slide and cam in their elevated positions.

S. In a cylinder-knitting machine, the cam D, constructed to tip sidewise under the influence of the needle-heels thereunder or thereover, in coinbination with means, substantially as described, for fixing said cam at different heig'hts, whereby itl is adapted for raising' the needles automatically out of action, one at a time, and for lowcringgl them in like manner into action.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand, this llth day of January, 1.8%, in the presence of two attesting witnesses.

ELIIIU LIPPITT.

Titnessesz H. H. STURTEVANT, F. A. DURBAN. 

